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Friday, January 23, 2009
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Kind words go a long way
I was at a local event last night, and a staffer from an area publication who I don't see all that often was there. He was talking to a businessman who I did not know.
I'm not sure how much he had to drink - it was early, so I think not much - but the editor greeted me enthusiastically and with a hug, to the point where I was a little surprised and overwhelmed. He proceeded to say some very nice things about me to the businessman as he introduced me.
I'm normally a pretty modest, low-key guy, but compliments are always nice to get, and I really appreciated it in this instance.
Behind the whole hack/flack war, I think it is clear that there is a lot of mutual respect and some strong friendships, which I guess is kind of the point. I was also happy to help another journalist/friend who was out of work get a bit of a jump start on a local opening -- he got the gig, and starts Monday.
The raves I got were not expected, and, I hope, were deserved. I approach my work with an attitude of doing the best I can to advocate for my clients, help the media folks I interact with, and get useful, desired information in front of an interested public. Typically it is behind-the-scenes stuff, but it is always nice when someone notices.
In all, some pretty satisfying things happening in the last couple of weeks, I hope to keep it rolling through the rest of the year.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Rolex can save your life!
Okay, it's a case of me piling on, but please! MelroseJewelers.com entered a blog post about how wearing a quality Rolex watch helped Owen Wilson recover from his bout of mental illness.
He was thinking of ending it all, and looked down at his wrist - voila! - there was a Submariner there, and he decided it was all worth it, after all.
To stretch things to create a pitch is often amusing. This is just disturbing.
http://www.melrosejewelers.com/rolex-watch-blog/rolex-quality-and-the-recovery-of-owen-wilson/
(this link is a bit wonky now -- they may have reconsidered)
Here's a sample of what was there (via TheDenverEgotist.com):
http://www.melrosejewelers.com/rolex-watch-blog/criminals-with-a-rolex-%E2%80%94-from-bernard-madoff-to-the-common-thief/
Wonder what the agreement Rolex has with its retailers says about stuff like this?
He was thinking of ending it all, and looked down at his wrist - voila! - there was a Submariner there, and he decided it was all worth it, after all.
To stretch things to create a pitch is often amusing. This is just disturbing.
http://www.melrosejewelers.com/rolex-watch-blog/rolex-quality-and-the-recovery-of-owen-wilson/
(this link is a bit wonky now -- they may have reconsidered)
Here's a sample of what was there (via TheDenverEgotist.com):
It was a dark period in Wilson’s life, and Rolex played a key role in helping Owen regain his bearings and his success…. [Owen Wilson] was seen riding his mountain bike in Santa Monica with the Rolex Submariner on his wrist. Obviously, the quality of a Rolex watch helped Owen realize and appreciate the quality of his own life…
Whatever the hawks of the media choose to write, it is clear that Rolex played a major role in Owen Wilson’s recovery… wearing a Rolex Submariner and attending Rolex Benefits helped Owen Wilson realize his life was valuable and worth living.
The friend who found this link called to complain. After getting nowhere with a sales rep, the rep called back and told him to “f*cking meet him and he would f*cking kick my ass.” (Correction: The threat was in the initial call, the follow-up call was an apology.)
http://www.melrosejewelers.com/rolex-watch-blog/criminals-with-a-rolex-%E2%80%94-from-bernard-madoff-to-the-common-thief/
Wonder what the agreement Rolex has with its retailers says about stuff like this?
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Great Job, Great PR
An AP wire story about a job opening is getting great exposure on a national basis today, on CNN.com and in many "weird news" portions of print and web news outlets. Are you interested in "Best Job in the World," with the tourism department of the Australian state of Queensland?
Want details? Collect $150,000 Australian dollars ($100,000 US) for six months of work. Just hang around Hamilton Island while promoting the place on a blog.
You get airfare, accommodations in an oceanfront villa, and go about the work of strolling the beaches, snorkeling, lounging by the pool. Your duties are to document your experiences and post photos and videos weekly on a blog.
They expect thousands of applicants, deadline to apply is Feb. 22, 11 finalists will be flown to the island in May for the final selection process, and the job starts July 1.
This is truly great PR - someone really gets this prize/job, and how many "help wanted" ads do you know of that get international exposure? How much ad space or TV time do you think this $100k "salary" might generate if it was spent on a typical ad or promotional campaign?
You can find the wire story here: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_AUSTRALIA_WORLDS_BEST_JOB?SITE=TXBEA&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
You can learn more about the job, and apply, here: www.islandreefjob.comFriday, January 9, 2009
Twitter tips
I'm relatively new to Twitter. I somehow managed to attract 200 followers as of today.
A local friend wrote to ask if I was doing anything special to attract followers. The simple answer: no. But I wrote her a short email on some of the things I've been learning about what works, and how to learn more.
You can find a lot of twitter tips out there on the web and on twitter itself if you search.
I'm just a twitter toddler, but here's my quick and dirty take on what seems to have worked for me.
Follow others - it seems like there is at least some expectation that you "follow back" others who follow you. It is not a hard and fast rule, and I have begun to get a little more rigorous about who I will follow back. I still follow more than I am followed. Some out there are followed by many, don't follow many back.
Especially look for and follow others who do similar work or have similar interests.
Look for those you know and follow them, those are folks that often follow you back quickly/easily.
When you get a follow, it seems good form to write and thank them. I have not been very good at this.
Try to find ways to contribute. Share news, resources, etc. You will know you are doing a good job when people RT (re-tweet, or repeat) your tweet to their circle. Build your relationships and credibility by showing your expertise and awareness of what info might be important/interesting to people.
Tweet at individuals on occasion about things they have posted, if you have a helpful suggestion, a similar experience, etc.
It's okay to brag sometimes when you get a "win", but stay away from overt selling, and I see a lot of "good morning", "goodnight", "twitter is broken" and other, somewhat useless (IMHO) tweets.
You can ask for help/suggestions/resources -- but don't just do that all the time.
I like an article I found called "5 stages of twitter acceptance" that addresses some of these things. others like "how to gain followers" or "how NOT to gain followers" -- find tweets that offer up resources like that to give you ideas and tips. "how to find people to follow", etc.
A local friend wrote to ask if I was doing anything special to attract followers. The simple answer: no. But I wrote her a short email on some of the things I've been learning about what works, and how to learn more.
You can find a lot of twitter tips out there on the web and on twitter itself if you search.
I'm just a twitter toddler, but here's my quick and dirty take on what seems to have worked for me.
Follow others - it seems like there is at least some expectation that you "follow back" others who follow you. It is not a hard and fast rule, and I have begun to get a little more rigorous about who I will follow back. I still follow more than I am followed. Some out there are followed by many, don't follow many back.
Especially look for and follow others who do similar work or have similar interests.
Look for those you know and follow them, those are folks that often follow you back quickly/easily.
When you get a follow, it seems good form to write and thank them. I have not been very good at this.
Try to find ways to contribute. Share news, resources, etc. You will know you are doing a good job when people RT (re-tweet, or repeat) your tweet to their circle. Build your relationships and credibility by showing your expertise and awareness of what info might be important/interesting to people.
Tweet at individuals on occasion about things they have posted, if you have a helpful suggestion, a similar experience, etc.
It's okay to brag sometimes when you get a "win", but stay away from overt selling, and I see a lot of "good morning", "goodnight", "twitter is broken" and other, somewhat useless (IMHO) tweets.
You can ask for help/suggestions/resources -- but don't just do that all the time.
I like an article I found called "5 stages of twitter acceptance" that addresses some of these things. others like "how to gain followers" or "how NOT to gain followers" -- find tweets that offer up resources like that to give you ideas and tips. "how to find people to follow", etc.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
An interesting PR and advertising observation
One local, one in the national spotlight.
Local:
I've seen red/white/blue bus seats here locally that have LWAT08.com, and not much else (I'll look to get a photo). I first noticed them leading up to the November election. I was mystified -- something from the League or Women Voters? No, that doesn't fit. What the heck is it? (and, oh, yeah -- it's now 2009)
Finally punched in the URL to a browser this a.m. -- it is the local power authority, and part of a campaign called "lighting with a twist" that encourages the use of compact flourescent lightbulbs. In fact, the website -- which is not very good -- has an icon and info that they won an integrated marketing communications award for the LWAT campaign. I hope that the other pieces of this award-winning campaign were executed better than the bus seats and website.
National:
NPR had a report this morning on the latest from the Tennessee Valley Authority coal waste spill. There is information coming out that TVA ignored warnings and recommendations about the possible breach of the pond's retaining walls. Lawsuits are staring to pile up. This will remain a long-term issue for them to clean up, in many ways.
But one moment from the audio of the press conference was pretty striking - some official drinking a glass of the local water to try to allay fears about its safety.
Local:
I've seen red/white/blue bus seats here locally that have LWAT08.com, and not much else (I'll look to get a photo). I first noticed them leading up to the November election. I was mystified -- something from the League or Women Voters? No, that doesn't fit. What the heck is it? (and, oh, yeah -- it's now 2009)
Finally punched in the URL to a browser this a.m. -- it is the local power authority, and part of a campaign called "lighting with a twist" that encourages the use of compact flourescent lightbulbs. In fact, the website -- which is not very good -- has an icon and info that they won an integrated marketing communications award for the LWAT campaign. I hope that the other pieces of this award-winning campaign were executed better than the bus seats and website.
National:
NPR had a report this morning on the latest from the Tennessee Valley Authority coal waste spill. There is information coming out that TVA ignored warnings and recommendations about the possible breach of the pond's retaining walls. Lawsuits are staring to pile up. This will remain a long-term issue for them to clean up, in many ways.
But one moment from the audio of the press conference was pretty striking - some official drinking a glass of the local water to try to allay fears about its safety.
Monday, December 29, 2008
08 in PR
Just under three full days left in 2008, and I was thinking about the good and bad in PR during the past year.
Ketchum in Canada helped me out from a great white north perspective: http://tinyurl.com/7oo69q
Lots of apologizing up there last year.
Guidelines if it happens to you:
acknowledge the harm done, take responsibility, include a believable statement of regret, and a commitment to ensure that it doesn't happen again.
And @PRsarahevans on twitter gave me this gem via @radinfo:
http://tinyurl.com/4qrtjm that focuses on the PR blunders of 08.
AIG, Nike, Absolut and Merck and Schering-Plough get well-deserved shout-outs.
Ketchum in Canada helped me out from a great white north perspective: http://tinyurl.com/7oo69q
Lots of apologizing up there last year.
Guidelines if it happens to you:
acknowledge the harm done, take responsibility, include a believable statement of regret, and a commitment to ensure that it doesn't happen again.
And @PRsarahevans on twitter gave me this gem via @radinfo:
http://tinyurl.com/4qrtjm that focuses on the PR blunders of 08.
AIG, Nike, Absolut and Merck and Schering-Plough get well-deserved shout-outs.
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